A resident assistant (also variously known as a resident advisor,community assistant,resident mentor,residence don,peer advisor,community advisor,collegiate fellow, or senior resident), commonly shortened to RA, is a trained peer leader who supervises those living in a residence hall or group housing facility. The majority of RAs work at colleges, universities, or residential mental health and substance abuse facilities.[1]

An RA has many roles and responsibilities, including building a residential community through programming, acting as a para-counselor for students, being a familiar first resource for students with academic or institutional questions, and enforcing residence policies. Typically, but not exclusively, the RA goes through a rigorous training process. An RA must balance his/her own schedule and priorities with the needs of the students he/she is supporting. Above all, a resident assistant must be an example and uphold professional and personal accountability as outlined by the institution.

According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2008 the national mean hourly wage of RAs was $12.17, and the national mean average annual wage was $25,320. An RA at a college or university does not typically receive an hourly wage, but is compensated in other ways. Common compensations are price-adjusted housing, free meals, and/or stipends. Listed below are two tables of RA hourly and annual mean wage, broken down by individual industries.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:[1]

These duties are a direct result of the leadership portion of the RA position. The RA needs to be a great liaison from the floor to the building coordinator. This requires writing detailed reports, keeping accurate records, and maintaining good communication. RAs are usually required to meet with their building coordinator weekly or bi-weekly to discuss their residents, planned programming, and any other issues or subjects that could affect the ability to perform their responsibilities. The RA may also assist with public relations and housing needs.

These duties are designated from the values and goals of the institution. This denotes that the RA should be a role model by following the regulations. In addition, the RA could be required to disseminate, explain, and uphold these regulations.

At the University of Illinois in Urbana Champaign, Resident Advisors are role models, peer advisors, resource people, student advocates, and educators. RAs assume leadership roles in creating a positive and friendly atmosphere for students of varied backgrounds. RAs at Illinois develop relationships with their residents on a personal level and try to become a resource to each of them. An RA at Illinois is responsible for a floor of residents, and creates programs and activities for their floor throughout the semester. RAs can point residents in the right direction and help them solve problems by referring them to departments on campus for more extensive help with certain issues. RAs also make sure to address the needs of underrepresented groups of students and work with other staff to incorporate the needs and wishes of these student groups into the community model.

At Illinois, RAs are compensated with waived fees for housing and meal plans, and are given a monthly stipend of roughly $105.00. RAs have nights where they are on duty, and must complete procedures such as checking the security of the building, making sure residents in the residence halls are safe and don’t have any unaddressed concerns, and be available to anyone who is having problems or needs help with something.[2]

The job of an RA is to create a community among their residents that is inclusive, welcoming, and comfortable environment for students who are living in university housing. Creating a social and welcoming living space is important for students getting acclimated to a new setting (the college campus) and making sure students feel at home.

The residents and the RA compose a community, simply by living together in a similar location. The RA may be required to foster this community by having the residents be tolerant and respectful of the other residents and their property. Community programming may also be a required duty in order to help create a sense of connectedness and union in the living space.

These duties deal with directly helping the residents as individuals. This requires the RA to know all the residents and be able to help each resident if they run into any problems with each other as well as with other things that may follow . Some problems could pertain to relationships, class-work, or institutional questions. The RA should have the skills to either assist the resident, or know of a resource that the resident can use to solve their problem.[3]

These duties involve creating a safe and healthy environment for the residents to reside in. Enforcing Community Standards, such as quiet hours and alcohol & drug policy are frequent occurrences. Fines, bonds, and behavioural contracts can be issued at many universities by RAs. Monitoring floor activity and helping with conflict resolution between residents is another important security related duty of the RA.

Resident assistants must promote diversity in their residence halls. They must facilitate the development of both awareness and tolerance among the students who reside in the dormitory or institution. RAs must be sure to promote an inclusive environment within the residence halls and make sure that everyone feels comfortable and represented with regards to their identities on campus.

This refers to academic development and social awareness. Resident assistants are there to promote the well-being of residents in university housing, and to make sure that residents feel like they have enough resources available to them and know how to use them. RAs may try to teach students about social justice and inclusivity, and take students to places on campus where they can learn more about social justice and groups with differing identities. RAs can show students where to go when they need academic help or advice, and can even offer advice of their own as they are often older students with more experience.[2]

One way these elements can be achieved is through programming. This is a major aspect of the job for a resident assistant. Programming can come in three different forms. This includes planned, passive, and take. A planned program is an event created or co-sponsored by the resident assistant. This event is specifically tailored to fit the needs and/or interests of the residents. Sometimes RAs are required to have one planned event for their residents a month, as well as contribute to a building program once a semester in which they work with other RAs to create a meaningful program for the whole building. A passive program is one that is completed without assembling or direct interaction between the residents and/or the resident assistant. Passive programs are generally used to start a conversation on a particular issue affecting the residents. These programs can range from a bulletin board that can be casually read in passing, or they can be more interactive like taking a survey, for example. Finally, take programs require the resident assistant to accompany residents to an event which can include an on-campus program such as an institution sponsored event, a basketball game or perhaps a movie. All these programs help to develop a community amongst residents and incorporate the core values mentioned above.[4]

The term "senior wardens", "student wardens" or "senior mentors" is a position in UK universities similar to that of the resident assistant in the USA. Such positions do not generally entail as much focus on improvement of student life as in the USA, and are instead more directed towards pastoral care of residents along with duties covering security, fire and first-aid along with night/weekend duty work. Furthermore, members of wardenial teams are often expected to contribute to the overall social life of their hall of residence. The positions are most often filled by students undertaking a PhD, although mature students studying for a master's degree have also been known to fill the role. Even undergraduate students from their second year of study onwards can be offered the position, such as what happens at the University of Bradford.

In Mexico, resident assistants are typically called "prefectos". The position has many of the same functions as in the USA, with a few exceptions including taking attendance every night at 11:30pm. The residence halls tend to be mainly of the same sex; therefore attendance is taken every night by a resident assistant to ensure opposite sex guests are no longer in the building.